Service?
Hi sorry if this is a bit long winded.....
I had my OLD caravan serviced over 3 weeks ago. It was actually new to me I bought it maybe 8 weeks ago in preperation to go away. Our storage facilty does servicing on-site in an approved workshop. When we put the van into storage 8 weeks ago we asked them to service it ASAP to give us enough time to rectify any problem as we were due to go to the south coast for 2 weeks.
3 days before we were due to go away we had a message left on our answerphone asking us to ring the storage as there was 'an urgent problem with our storage' bemused i rang the main phone number and the emergency number several times that night leaving several messages but got no answer. Then maybe 10 times the following morning from the advertised opening time again leaving messages. Eventually after 4 hours of no reply that morning i rang again left a snotty message and was phoned back within 5 mins by the mechanic.
He explanied that a week and a half ago he had started the service on the caravan but stopped after taking off the first wheel as he could see some serious defects with it and it was 'dangerous and probably not worth repairing!'
I asked why it had took a week and a half to inform me of this. (I had the caravan on a service pitch 4 days eariler and my son had been playing with one of the lads that worked there whilst he was cleaning a caravan and my wife stood chatting with them for a good 20 minutes). The reply was that he had passed it to the office and left it with them to inform me. Which they hadn't done till yesterday. I was furious. This was our first family holiday since the birth of my son nearly 2 years which had been planned for months and now we were being told not to take the caravan away!
Well panic stations and he who dares wins, i spent a fortune bought a much newer, much nicer van from a reputable dealer. YES lesson learnt.
We have had a great two weeks away and have just returned and in the post.........an invoice for almost £200 for a 'service' from our storage site. With a check sheet that just has a line through with writing down the side saying the issues that were found after taking of one wheels and that the service was stopped after these faults were found. NOTHING ELSE WAS SERVICED. not the inside not the electric not the gas nothing. To add insult to injury i was speaking with the owner when i dropped off our new caravan before coming home!
Am I wrong in thinking that this charge is un-reasonable? ( Like i don't mind paying something even with the shoddy customer service and leaving it till two days before I was going away to inform me) I was going to ask them to do a service on the new caravan to make sure it is in working order before the 3 month warrenty runs out. I think i may go elsewhere.
So would you pay the full amount, a small amount or tell them where to go? Bearing in mind i'm paid up for storage for the next 10 months.
thanks